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GOP leaders vow to crack down on campus antisemitism

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House Republicans have launched a comprehensive investigation into federal funding for universities where students have illegally taken over public space to protest the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.

At Columbia University, police finally cracked down on protesters that had taken over Hamilton Hall.

On Monday, protesters smashed windows, barricaded doors, and hung an “Intifada” banner — what critics said is a call for violence against Jews.

Take a look at some of the scenes as police raided the building —

At UCLA, scuffles broke out between pro-Palestine and pro-Israel protesters after a Jewish girl was reportedly beaten by a mob.

Some of the nation’s most prestigious colleges have been dealing with reports of rising antisemitism for years.

In response, several Republican-controlled House committees have announced a wide-ranging probe into universities — and threaten to withhold federal research grants and other government support if discrimination against Jewish students isn’t stopped.

The House investigation comes on the heels of several high-profile hearings that led to the resignations of the presidents of Harvard University and the University of Pennsylvania. House Republicans have vowed to continue their scrutiny and have called on the administrators of Yale, UCLA, and the University of Michigan to testify before Congress next month.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, speaking at a news conference, stated, “We will not allow antisemitism to thrive on campus, and we will hold these universities accountable for their failure to protect Jewish students on campus.”

Across the country, campus protesters have demanded that their institutions cut financial ties with Israel and have criticized the thousands of civilian deaths in Gaza caused by Israeli forces following the deadly attack by Hamas on October 7.

Some protest organizers have called for Hamas to violently seize Israeli territory and have denounced Zionism. Meanwhile, across the country Jewish students have reported being targeted and claim that campus administrators have not done enough to ensure their safety.

After visiting Columbia University last week with several other top House Republicans, Speaker Johnson described the “anti-Jewish hatred” he witnessed as “appalling.”

Republicans are focusing on this issue at a time when election season is in full swing, and party leadership is seeking a cause that can unite their members and create a divide among Democrats. The House GOP’s impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden has struggled to gain traction, and the Republican conference is reeling after a series of important bills left GOP lawmakers deeply divided. Democrats have also experienced internal feuds at times over the Israel-Hamas war and how campus administrators have handled the protests.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat from New York, addressed the issue in a floor speech on Tuesday, saying, “It is unacceptable when Jewish students are targeted for being Jewish, when protests exhibit verbal abuse, systemic intimidation, or glorification of the murderous and hateful Hamas or the violence of October 7th.”

Rep. Pete Aguilar, the third-ranking House Democrat, emphasized the importance of colleges ensuring that everyone has the ability to protest and make their voice heard while also honoring the safety of individuals. He acknowledged that many Jewish students do not feel safe on campus, which he described as a “real issue.” However, he added that university administrators should be given time to take action before Congress intervened.

Speaker Johnson has promised to use “all the tools available” to push the universities to address the issue. He was joined by chairs from six committees with jurisdiction over a wide range of government programs, including National Science Foundation grants, health research grants, visas for international students, and the tax code for nonprofit universities.

Without Democratic support in the divided Congress, it remains unclear what legislative punishments House Republicans could actually implement. Any bills passed by the House would likely face significant challenges in the Democratic-controlled Senate.

However, the House hearings with university presidents have already produced viral moments and provided Republicans with high-profile opportunities to denounce campuses as hotbeds of antisemitism. In December, Ivy League university presidents struggled to answer pointed questions about whether “calling for the genocide of Jews” would violate their respective universities’ codes of conduct.

Rep. Elise Stefanik, a Republican from New York who posed the question during the December hearing, noted that it became the most-viewed congressional hearing in history. She also framed the campaign against antisemitism as part of a broader conservative effort to combat liberal bias at elite American universities.

“Enough is enough,” Stefanik declared. “It is time to restore law and order, academic integrity, and moral decency to America’s higher education institutions.”

The House Committee on Education and the Workforce has also requested that the administrators of Yale, UCLA, and the University of Michigan appear at a hearing on May 23 to discuss how they handled the recent protests.

Committee Chair Virginia Foxx, a Republican from North Carolina, had a clear message for university leaders.

“As Republican leaders, we have a clear message for mealy-mouthed, spineless leaders: Congress will not tolerate your dereliction of duty to your Jewish students,” Foxx said.

“American universities are officially put on notice that we have come to take our universities back,” she said Tuesday.

“Everyone affiliated with these universities will receive a healthy dose of reality,” Foxx said. “Actions have consequences. One of those consequences is that I’ve given notice to appear to Yale, UCLA and Michigan to appear before the Education and Workforce Committee on May 23 for a hearing on their handling of the these most recent outrages.”

About the Author

Stephen is a U.S. Army veteran with over a decade of combined experience in political commentary, economics, and news.